The Prower Chronicles: Path of the Chosen One
by DJ Kitsune
Summary: After losing his soulmate, Cosmo, Miles 'Tails' Prower has decided to leave Sonic Team and move on with his life.  Doing so will soon reveal his true destiny...  Revised, in 2010, from the first draft written and published here in late 2006.
1. Tears, Conflict, and Decision

The Prower Chronicles

Path of the Chosen One

**Written By Joshua King**

I'm tired of waiting. Ever since the day that I lost my soul mate to the cold hand of death, I've waited for her to come back through the potted plant on my desk. Supposedly she's reborn and growing in that pot, but I can't tell. And even if she looks the same, will she have the same soul?

I'm tired of being weak. It was because of my weakness that my soul mate died; both my physical limitations and my lack of willpower. I didn't want her to be sacrificed but I thought that it was the only way to save the world. My hands ended her and only they can bring her back.

And Journal, as I write in you for perhaps the final time, I'm tired of doing nothing to resolve both of these issues. Instead of floating within this team doing the usual drudgery and bathing in my sorrow and regret, I could be taking action. Starting today, I will take action. I just hope I can make the right choices on the way.

Miles "Tails" Prower

**Chapter One**

Tears, Conflict, and Decision

The ink has barely dried on the page and I'm already second-guessing myself. For twelve years, all I've known is this place in Knothole Villiage and the time I spent on the planet Earth. And for all that time, I've been a member of an elite team of heroes. I'm leaving that team tonight.

The leader of the team, Sonic the Hedgehog, is not going to take the news easily. To him, I've always been his "little buddy". What he doesn't know is that I stopped being that after the death of my soul mate. I lost my innocence on that day.

But I'm not going to tell him immediately…if I tell him at all. I want to let Knuckles; my mentor, friend, and the closest thing to a father that I've ever had know about my decision first.

It was no surprise to me that I found him guarding the richest prize on the planet of Mobius: the Master Emerald. It was a task that was his and his alone: to make certain that it never fell into the wrong hands.

As I approached him from the cloudless blue sky above Angel Island, the location of the Master Emerald, Knuckles waved to me in greeting. We embraced as I landed and I gave him a quick look that told him that I wasn't on a social call. Perhaps wrongly, I gave him my news as abruptly and as pointed as possible.

"I'm leaving the team tonight." I said as Knuckles bent his head a little. It didn't surprise me that he wasn't shocked: he probably knew this day was coming from the way I'd been keeping to myself as of late.

"I assume your feelings of guilt over Cosmo have brought this on. Can't say I blame you: if I was in your shoes and Tikal was six feet under I wouldn't be able to stay either. I don't even think I would have lasted the four years that you have trying to move on with the team." Knuckled admitted as he paced around the Master Emerald.

"You told Sonic yet?" he asked me as he leaned on the emerald with his arm.

"I was going to save him for last."

"Don't tell him yourself. If you really mean to leave then it's best to not tell the one individual who could possibly convince you to stay."

"Well he's not going to like the fact that I'm taking the Blue Typhoon with me. I'm going to need it and a few other things I've built for where I'm going." I explained as Knuckles pointed up to the sky and I nodded sarcastically.

Having finished my business, I waved goodbye to Knuckles and headed for Sonic Team headquarters. It was in a secret location near Knothole Villiage and I was pretty sure that the place would be empty.

For the first hour or so, my suspicions were confirmed. But as I was preparing to fire up the Blue Typhoon, a shadow moved along the wall which I knew belonged to Amy Rose. I was thankful that I had finished all of my packing in time. As she walked down the staircase into the hanger, I knew she was unaware of my plans and as such she waved to me as she usually did. Just like with Knuckles, I decided not to beat around the bush about what I was doing.

"I'm leaving the team, Amy. In fact, I'm leaving the planet itself. I'm taking the Blue Typhoon and everything else that belongs to me with the exception of the Tornado XTerra." I explained bluntly as Amy tried to recover from her initial surprise.

"You can't! We need you on the team…Sonic needs you." she responded as I shook my head.

"Well he's going to have to move on without me. Frankly that's something I cannot do as long as I'm on the team. My only hope of shaking off the guilt for Cosmo's death is to start my life fresh somewhere else." I stated firmly as Amy started to shed a tear.

"If that's how you feel then I can't force you to stay. But promise me that you'll come back someday…please." she asked as I went to her and held her for a moment.

"If I can, I will. Knuckles told me to not tell Sonic about this, so I need you to keep this news from him. You can tell Sally and the others if you wish."

"The others will find out soon enough." she decided as I hopped into the Blue Typhoon and flew off. I could only imagine what would happen when Sonic did find out about my departure…

**Later that night…**

"Where's Tails?" Sonic asked as Knuckles lowered his head slightly. Amy and the others at the dinner table did the same and Sonic almost did a double take.

"What's going on here? Where is Tails and why isn't he at the table with the rest of us?" Sonic said with a more intense tone of voice.

"He's gone, Sonic. He left with the Blue Typhoon and all of his tech stuff a few hours ago. He said that he can no longer be a member of the team. I'm sorry…" Amy Rose said sadly as Sonic became suddenly irate.

"You mean to tell me that he just flew off and ditched us? I bet it was over that dead girlfriend of his!" Sonic yelled as he stomped around the dining room.

"You're right, Sonic, it was. He feels like he can't move on with his life while he is here and I for one understand his point of view. She died while he was on this team by his own hand. That's something he's going to have to live with for the rest of his life." Princess Sally stated. The others quickly nodded in solemn agreement.

"So what if he feels guilt over her! Who's going to replace him and his abilities on this team? Rotor is far too old to do it and I see no one else at this table that is capable." Sonic said as the others glared at him.

"Are you listening to yourself? Do you even care that he is trying to come to terms with his life. He has desperately needed to do some soul-searching for the last four years but his duties here have been in the way. Or are you so selfish that your friendship with him means nothing?" Knuckles scolded Sonic as he proceeded to stomp off downstairs.

The others were just as upset and they didn't take too long in leaving themselves. As they headed downstairs as well, Sonic was heard kicking the dining room wall and cursing Tails for what he'd done. Then Sonic started to talk to himself and unknown to him, Knuckles had decided to come back up and try to reason with him again. Wisely, Knuckles decided to listen in on Sonic's conversation with himself.

"Damn…I thought when I convinced Tails to fire the gun that he'd be forced to stay. That damn fox and his dead bitch are going to cost me everything! I just hope he never gets wind of what was really going on during the Metarex battle or he may escape our grasp." Sonic muttered to himself as Knuckles suddenly startled him and pointed at him.

"Are you saying that we could've beaten the Metarex without Cosmo having to sacrifice herself?" Knuckles yelled as he got within centimeters of Sonic and stared at him in a furious rage.

"You put Cosmo on the chopping block just to keep Tails on the team?" Knuckles yelled again as he held his right fist against Sonic's face. "And who is this 'we' you're referring to?" The other members of the Freedom Fighters were upstairs by this time and heard Knuckle's last statement.

"I want an answer and now!" Princess Sally ordered as Knuckles backed off. Sonic laughed back at her with an arrogant look on his face.

"You'll never get an answer from me!" Sonic replied with arrogance.

"I didn't expect you to give one. For months since you returned from Earth you have shown slight differences from the heroic friend I once knew and I'm smart enough to consider that, perhaps, you are an imposter. I'm putting you under arrest for first degree murder and my friends and I will discover the truth!" Sally barked as Sonic used a burst of speed to escape through an open window before Bunnie could get a hold of him.

"Sorry sugar he got one step ahead of me." Bunnie lamented.

"Tails is going to find out about this someday you know that right?" Amy added from the far corner of the room. In their hearts they prayed that they'd be as far away from Sonic and Tails as possible when it happened. They didn't want to see who would breathe their last as a result.


	2. Journey to Papetoon

**Chapter Two**

Journey to Papetoon

I quickly shook off my thoughts about what was going on with the team and focused on where I was going to go. The Blue Typhoon, with the help of the warp rings that I packed, could technically go anywhere. But in my heart I already knew where I was going to start over. So, with a light sigh, I programmed the navigational system to head for the planet of Papetoon…the home of Team Star Fox.

It made sense to me at the time; I mean Fox McCloud is my distant…very distant cousin. I guess that's where I get my piloting skills from and all that. The problem was that I hadn't spoken to him in a while. But I knew that as soon as I reached the Lylat System he would prepare to welcome me with open arms. At least that's what I hoped.

But the sound of the microwave going off quickly made me get out of the cockpit and end my worrying. It would be a few hours before I'd get there anyway and fretting about what I couldn't control wouldn't do me any good anyhow.

With a big slice of pepperoni-stuffed calzone in hand, I did the quick check of the gauges and put on a DVD that I'd picked up on Earth. Laughing my head off would do me some good.

"Man, that Astro Boy kills me every time!" I chuckled to myself after having sat through twelve episodes of pure comedic and dramatic genius. I looked at my watch and realized that I was within minutes of Papetoon's orbit. Suddenly, I heard the familiar noise of someone trying to contact the ship.

"Well if it isn't Miles Prower, my brother from another mother! How come you're out this far from the planet of Mobius?" Fox McCloud asked me as his image came into view on the com screen in the control room.

"Do you know how cheesy that brother line is? As for the other statement, I left Sonic Team yesterday and I thought that you'd have something for me to do." I replied as I entered the control room and sat down next to the com screen.

"We were until just recently as bored as all get out. But starting last week there's been some very nasty activity going on near Corneria and we think that either Andross or General Anglar is involved. You're more than welcome to land on the strip near the den. We can discuss the matter in private once you're inside." Falco jumped in as I saluted him and ran back to the cockpit.

**Ten minutes later in Team Star Fox's 'den'…**

It was almost a surreal experience as I walked into the den of Team Star Fox. I immediately gravitated to Slippy Toad who was working on something on the large computer in the back. We fisted and he pointed to the heads-up display.

"We found out that the activity is being caused by General Anglar. We've had the pleasure of scrapping his hide before." Slippy said with an almost arrogant attitude.

"He related to Andross in any way?" I asked as Slippy nodded.

"His right-hand man, we believe. He's got four others who work with him the most noted being a guy by the name of Octoman."

"That's a weird name. What his background?" I chuckled as Slippy let out one himself.

"He raced on the infamous F-Zero circuit for a while but he got tired of losing to Captain Falcon all the time. I assume he met up with General Anglar at some point and joined his ragamuffin team of pilots." Slippy laughed as he got up and went over to Falco and took some notes off of Fox McCloud's desk.

By the time he came back I had looked at all of the inventions that were near his computer. Being the mechanic/inventor that I am, I was already thinking of improvements he could make.

I was about to mention this to Slippy but suddenly I found myself covering my ears as an alarm went off in the den. Suddenly I saw Fox McCloud run in and start pointing to the hanger.

"I want everyone in the Arwings on the double! Let's move!" he yelled as he went past me and then looked my way.

"You're more than welcome to join us. Corneria is getting hit pretty hard and we could use your skills."

"That's what I'm here for. You'll definitely have the advantage of giving them an enemy they've never encountered before. Just make sure to brief me thoroughly on our opponents so I'm not at a disadvantage myself." I mentioned as Fox and I ran to the hanger.

I quickly fired up the Blue Typhoon and joined the four Arwings in the vacuum of space. Thankfully, the planet of Corneria was only ten minutes away. As I neared the planet, the computer flashed and started displaying the enemies I'd be facing along with other information. I couldn't help but smile as I entered the planet's atmosphere. They'd never know what hit them.

One thing was for certain: the fighting was the fiercest I'd seen in a long time. But it only took a few shots from the particle beam DEW on my ship to send the enemy units ahead of me into a panic. It wasn't long before Falco and Fox McCloud were shouting over the radio.

"We've got them now, guys. Miles is sending Zako and Octoman's units away from the city and I've got the other two punks on the run." Falco informed the team as I suggested that we force all of them into a bottleneck at one of the canyons outside of the main city.

"That's a great idea my friend!" Fox McCloud shouted back at me as I led the two generals that were fleeing from me into the canyon. Unfortunately for me, I'd forgotton how big the Blue Typhoon was and it was all I could do to keep from banging her up against the canyon walls.

As if fate wanted to make things more difficult, Zako and Octoman suddenly turned around and began to fire at me. Obviously they had seen Falco's Arwing and knew what we were up to. But they couldn't have guessed that I had deflector shields that could bounce back their shots.

When they had been hit by their own ammunition a few times, they wised up and stopped entirely. With all four of General Anglar's cronies trapped like rats, Falco and I waited for the Cornerian Defense Force to arrive.

They joined up with us a few minutes later with Fox McCloud and Slippy behind them. Unfortunately, they told me, General Anglar had gotten away. But, I thought, we managed to cripple him somewhat and that was good enough.

**A few months later…**

"Are you doing anything right now, Falco?" I asked as Falco waved me over. I handed him some information about the University of Fichina.

"Peppy's daughter Lucy is the Head Professor of Astrophysics at that university. I'm assuming you're going to enroll when they start classes again this fall." Falco said as I nodded and took the papers back.

"I'm going for a bachelor's degree in business administration with a minor in chemistry. With all of the battles we've went through in the last four months, I forgot why I came here in the first place. But now I want to get started with my plans."

"Which are…?" Falco asked while I paced around a bit.

"I want to open up my own business on my home planet. There's also something else I'd like to do too but for that I'd need you and Fox to help me. I want to learn martial arts and I know you two are very skilled." I explained as Falco formed a slightly frightening grin on his face.

"Well then, my little kit, let's get started!" he said as he lunged at me with his talons at the ready. As he and I exchanged blows I smiled. Finally, I thought, I can become strong enough to ensure that what happened to Cosmo would never happen to anyone else.


	3. Threads of a Web

**Chapter Three**

Threads of a Web

Every day that I trained with Falco was an exhausting test of my body's resilience and my mental toughness. Adding to that was my online classes through the University of Fichina and the occasional battles against the enemies of Team Star Fox. But somehow I managed to find time to work on a side project.

Ever since I saw the items on Slippy's work desk, I had wanted to try and give them some upgrades. In the process I hoped to learn about how his inventions worked and maybe gain some new knowledge that I could use on my own designs.

This idea of working with technologies from different planets and sharing the results to everyone in the universe formed the crux of the corporation I wanted to start after I'd finished my time in college.

So, long story short, I began to tinker with Slippy's stuff. At first, Slippy was hesitant to let me get anywhere near his inventions. He also told me that there wasn't room in the den for the two of us. I guess he felt threatened by my natural skill at building machines and technological devices.

It was during one of our arguments over the changes I was making to the weapons Slippy had designed that Falco and Fox McCloud decided to enter the fray.

"I don't know why you've got such a problem with it. Miles has knowledge we could use and he readily admits that you're inventions contain things that are unique and could help him. So why don't you stop being selfish and learn to share?" Falco told Slippy as he glared at Falco with a frown on his face.

"Why don't you shut your beak for once? I agree with you but I'm sure Miles doesn't want someone to just start messing with his Blue Typhoon unless he's sure it will be beneficial. I need to see that Miles' ideas will be good ones before I can just let him have at my stuff." Slippy replied as Fox McCloud shrugged and began to put in his two cents.

"I think you're just jealous that Miles has somehow been able to build a particle-beam direct energy weapon that is small enough to fit on his ship and doesn't take a planetary power plant to operate."

Slippy murmured 'whatever' as I began to think about the battle on Corneria. And that's when I recalled something that had bothered me about what had happened when we fought General Anglar and his four cronies.

"I know this is off the subject…but didn't you feel like the battle on Corneria four months ago was too easy. Maybe I'm crazy but I have a gut feeling that Anglar's four subordinates were simply a diversion for something else." I suggested as Fox nodded strangely.

"I think you're right. If Anglar had really wanted to start some trouble on Corneria, he wouldn't have tried such a weak offensive. And now that I think about it…"

Fox said as he walked over to the large computer in the room.

He told the computer to search through the video footage of the battle with General Anglar and display any shots of Anglar and his ship. He had told us right after the battle that Anglar had managed to flee but he hadn't actually seen Anglar during the battle and no one else had either until about two minutes before he left the planet.

The images he received only confirmed our suspicions: General Anglar was in a one-seat ship similar in design to Zako's Devil Shark, but smaller. From the combined footage we managed to plot what he was doing more or less.

"There are only a few things that he could have been doing. Either he was trying to steal something from one of the industrial buildings near his landing site and failed or he was sending or receiving some sort of data from the library." I noted as Falco came to his own conclusion.

"It was the second option. If he had really wanted to steal something, he would have just launched a massive offensive and tried to take it during the fighting."

As Falco said this, Fox told the computer to search for all data transfers to and from the Corneria Public Library during the ten minutes or so that Anglar would have been inside. Four files were sent from one computer during that time and they were all heavily encrypted. It was obvious that whatever information he sent was critical to whatever Anglar or his superior, Andross, was up to.

"But why wouldn't he just use his own computer to send the information…of course! You don't run the risk of being traced when using a public computer." Slippy said in answering his own question.

Fox, while Slippy was shaking his head in embarrassment, had received the four files and was trying to will the computer into breaking through the encryption that protected them from foreign eyes. He finally succeeded but the results weren't what he had hoped for.

"I break through one code to find another. Whatever Andross is up to…he is doing everything possible to keep it a secret to the world until he's ready to unleash his plan." he sighed as he moved to the side and let us see the four documents.

The first showed the molecular model for some kind of compound. To say it was a complex mixture of atoms, chains, rings, and various bonds would be an understatement: it made me feel lucky to be studying for a minor in chemistry.

"Well, university student, what do we have in door number one exactly?" Falco teased me as I held up a finger and shook my head.

"This thing is filled with benzene rings which tell me that we have four viable options here: this compound is a drug, dye, plastic, or type of rubber. We can nix the last three I'd bet. Now the question is if this drug is for medicinal purposes or for getting stoned." I said frankly as Fox examined Document Two.

"Document Two seems to have information on how to make the drug in question. It looks to be too detailed for me to make heads or tails of. Want to take over again, Miles?" Fox asked as we sighed and chuckled together.

"One thing it says is that toluene cannot be used as a substitute for the benzene. It is common practice to sometimes use toluene instead of benzene for making certain drugs because it is less toxic and can work with more liquids. But this drug has to be in a testing phase and is being tailor made to have such a restriction. As for the other steps…" I said as I grabbed a pen on the desk to use as a pointer.

"Our next question is what the drug does and why it is being tailor made for use somewhere. My only clue from this document is step three which says that it is possible to combine it with a solution of ammonium nitrate and water for maximum effectiveness…no…it can't be…" I said as I clutched my heart.

"What is it, Miles? What's wrong?" Fox asked as I recovered and looked at him with a smile.

"I just had a very scary thought but it would be near impossible for it to happen so don't worry about it. Let's just see what this document here can tell us." I told Fox as I pointed to the document.

It contained a product list for the various chemicals and materials needed to produce the drug. Ammonium nitrate and water were on the list near the bottom but it was the products at the top next to benzene that captured my interest.

"The list here contains the products needed to produce the drug and it is arranged by amount needed with the numbers to the right being the actual measurements in kilograms or liters depending on the product. Most of them have some use in agriculture and ammonium nitrate is one of the most commonly used fertilizers known."

"Sounds like Andross plans on trying to terraform his home planet of Venom again. But that still doesn't explain what role this new drug has in all of this." Slippy commented as I looked at the last document.

"It's a message to someone…probably further instructions." I said as I looked at it more carefully:

_To the Dragon,_

_The product is almost finished. The team appreciates your work with the absorbers without which our project wouldn't have lifted off the ground. When the product is ready, as agreed, the monkey will use it first to create our b.o.o. Then you and the doctor will use it. If all of it succeeds, we will have the army needed to conquer the universe. But our enemies, the foxes, must remain alone. We can only find victory if they remain by themselves and ignorant of our other enemies. As for the other doctor in our merry band, keep him working with his metal. He will not be of any help to us beyond that. _

_The Fish_

"It would have to be a riddle, wouldn't it?" Fox lamented as I started thinking hard. The message wouldn't be too hard to crack on the surface. It was the plan that we wouldn't see in the message that had me scared.

"We know that _The Fish_ is General Anglar and _the monkey_ has to be Andross. And I know _b.o.o _stands for "base of operations" which could only confirm your idea about his plans. He is going to terraform Venom or something similar." I noted

"But our biggest problem is that Andross is obviously not working alone. He's allied himself with some unknowns. And it is obvious that his biggest scare is that we will meet up with the enemies of those unknowns and build a team of our own strong enough to stop them." Falco added as I suddenly hit upon something.

"Look at the last two lines. Doctor…metal…I'd bet that my enemy Dr. Robotnik has teamed up with Andross. But from the last line, he isn't completely committed to the team's goals and will only help them with building machines or something else and no more. Beyond that, I have no clue what the rest means or if I'm even correct to begin with." I stated as I slumped down in an empty seat.

"No…you're completely right about this Dr. Robotnik you speak of. Why would General Anglar mention _foxes_ instead of just _fox_ unless he had this guy as an ally? I'd say that this Dr. Robotnik was told about your involvement in the skirmish at Corneria and he identified you as being one of his enemies." Falco replied as I nodded weakly.

"I agree with Falco. But we still don't have a clue who the dragon is or who the first doctor is. I can only guess that the first doctor is the creator or co-creator of the drug in question. The only thing we know about the dragon is that his _absorbers_ were critical to making the drug." Fox replied while taking a long sip of his coffee.

"Perhaps a little research is needed here. I could call my dad and see if he's heard of anyone involved in stuff like that. We could also have Miles ask Peppy's daughter about it when he has a minute at the university." Slippy offered as the rest of us agreed. We certainly wouldn't get anywhere just sitting on our tail ends.


	4. Doctors and Dragons

**Chapter Four**

Doctors and Dragons

Despite a week of doing research, I was unable to find any clues as to the identity of either _The Dragon_ or his work with _absorbers_. Even my talk with Professor Lucy Hare, Peppy's daughter, provided me nothing but the realization that whoever _The Dragon_ was, he or she didn't live anywhere near Mobius, Earth, or the Lylat System.

The messages on my cellphone over that same week informed me that my friends on Team Star Fox were unlucky as well. It was while I was deleting those same messages that I remembered the one thing that worked better as a method of brainstorming than anything else.

When I started school at the University of Fichina, I took that first look at the bulletin board in the student commons and found a call for two players for _Dungeons and Dragons_. I'd heard of the tabletop RPG during my time on the planet Earth and I'd played the game with Chris Thorndyke and a few of his friends. I even ran a few sessions as the Dungeon Master and they were exciting.

And my experience playing in college was no different. When I had a big test coming up or anything else where stress would be higher than normal and I needed a way to recharge and regroup my thoughts, I would look no further than Tuesday Night.

My friends arrived at my dorm on time as usual. Professor Lucy Hare was our current Dungeon Master and she hid behind the DM screen as I took out my hand-carved model of Tiberon, my level eight wizard/cleric, and prepared my character sheet and other papers. The others did the same with their sheets and models.

We were told that we'd be heading into a huge swamp where it was rumored that a huge gibbering mouther was eating travelers in the area. If we were victorious, then we would receive compensation in the form of 5000 gold from the local survivors. There was also the chance of getting treasure from the travelers who were rescued.

As the DM placed the model that she'd created she officially went into DM character and told us that it was a mutated version of the monster and thus had the power to drain the abilities of anyone it engulfed as well as drain their health.

"The boss monster reminds me of a real creature that I heard was created on a planet a long way from here." Samuel Longsley told me as he reached for some popcorn.

"Don't tell me that someone created a creature that could eat people. Do you know anything else about it?" I asked my roommate as I looked at him.

"The creature couldn't eat people, Miles. But it could latch onto someone and absorb their energy. I recall that it was created on some planet by this pirate group but I don't know more. Every search engine I've checked says any information is classified and not available to the public."

Hearing this gave me goose bumps because I knew these creatures could be the _absorbers_ that General Anglar was thanking _The Dragon_ for in the document at Star Fox HQ.

Our D&D session lasted for another hour. After I'd cleaned up my dorm, I headed to the University Hangar and hopped in my ship and flew to Papetoon. When I arrived, I wasted no time in using the computer to search for information on these absorbers. Slippy was mad, of course. He had to end his game of Solitare to accommodate my needs.

"What's the damn hurry, Miles...Oh, I see, you may have some new lead on those documents." Slippy said as he got on the intercom and called the rest of the team into the room.

At every turn, despite my best effort, I only received basic information from my search for _absorbers_. But when I did a search on pirate groups, I found my back door into the information I really wanted. The entry was on a notorious terrorist group called the Space Pirates.

However, to my dismay, the entry only said that the organization of "interstellar nomads that look like humanoid insects" had been eradicated and that its research was now in the hands of the Galactic Federation and would not be available to the public.

"Damn it. I suppose we're going to have to contact the Galactic Federation and request the information directly. You have any contacts in that organization, Fox?" I asked as Fox nodded.

"The Lylat System isn't under their jurisdiction so my contact with them has been limited, but I do have two people in mind. They used to be a part of the Cornerian Defense Force a few years ago but now they're a part of the GF's administration." Fox told me as Falco shook his head and chuckled.

"You think that Bill and Kat are going to be able to help us get the information we need? Do they even have the security clearance to do that?" Falco asked while setting up the conference call with the GF.

"If they can't get clearance with the possible threat that the four documents we have describe then they'll direct me to the individuals who can. Guaran-damn-teed!" Fox replied as he finally got a hold of Bill Grey and Kat Monroe.

We uploaded the documents to their database and they read them for a few minutes. With every passing moment, their faces displayed a little more worry. I could see Bill calling someone, possibly his superior, and pacing as he held the phone he was using. Kat was scribbling some notes down and looked almost panicky as she held her pen.

"Our superiors have decided that the only safe way to go about this is to have someone come to your headquarters and confer with you about these documents and the classified information you seek. The bounty hunter Samus Aran should arrive on your planet by tomorrow night." Kat Monroe told us as she and Bill said goodbye and ended the conference call.

**Meanwhile, on the planet of Venom…**

"Gentleman, we are right on schedule. As soon as I can devise a proper delivery system, we can start transforming this planet back to its former glory. I can have that same system ready for testing by the end of the week. That concludes my report…" a small nanobot said as he whirred and clanked down a set of descending stairs.

"So Dr. Robotnik says. I have my doubts…but then again I am not the most trusting individual in this group. If he is right and this catalyst does work we could see the goals of all of us achieved in one deft and lightning quick stroke." a dragon-like being stated.

"I'm just glad that we agreed that mine would be taken care of first. It may also draw the foxes into a battle that they are not prepared for. As far as we know they would have no inclination that I am allied with individuals as distinguished as yourself and the two doctors. Our power would crush them where they stood."

"Well said, Andross. You are absolutely certain that the documents that General Anglar sent to us did not get sent anywhere else, right?" the dragon-like being asked as Andross noticed that he was getting a message on his computer stating that someone was trying to start a conference call. The individual just happened to be General Anglar.

"Speak of the devil. It looks like my lackey is trying to send me a message. Mind if I display him onscreen?" Andross asked as the dragon waved his hand in approval.

General Anglar was sweating and looked very nervous as he tried to compose himself before his master and the individual next to him whom he had learned to fear even more. Andross quickly gave the dragon a look apologizing for his servant's show of weakness.

"I've come with disappointing news. It is possible that the information that I gave to you could have fallen into the hands of our enemies…" Anglar stated as Andross suddenly leaned forward on the desk in a fit of rage.

"Explain how this could have happened and be thankful you are not here in person or I'd skip this part and just tear your head from your shoulders." Andross growled as General Anglar loudly swallowed the huge lump that had formed in his throat.

"I was unaware of it until just recently, but it is the policy of the government of Corneria that they create a backup of any heavily-encrypted files that are either uploaded or downloaded onto any public computer database. One of my spies informed me of this. Usually it is employed as a safety measure for files sent or received from Corneria's Defense Force but…" General Anglar struggled to admit as Andross turned his back and shut down the conference call.

"Our plans will hit a significant road block if the foxes gain our other enemies as allies. We must prevent this at all costs and we must do so as silently and efficiently as possible. As much as I loathe admitting it...we would be in a corner if all of our enemies joined forces." Andross stated as the dragon suddenly received a call of his own.

Within the span of a few minutes, the dragon-like creature called Ridley received confirmation that Samus Aran was heading for the Lylat System. It seemed that General Anglar had failed to protect the information from their enemies' hands. But he was not completely worried. It was one thing to have the information but putting all of the pieces together was another matter.

"Where are you going?" Andross asked as Ridley started to fly out of the makeshift headquarters that they were in.

"The foxes and my enemy are about to meet tomorrow night unless I prevent it…Heh, I guess my first batch of Space Pirates and Metroids will get to go through testing sooner than I'd planned." Ridley laughed as he left the headquarters with an evil grin on his face.

A few seconds later, a snake-like creature emerged from the shadows behind Andross and started rubbing his mutated hands together.

"Do you think that Ridley hass a chance against the foxesss" he hissed as Andross rubbed his chin methodically.

"It all depends on how much they know and how accurate what they think they know is. But I wouldn't worry yourself too much Dr. Elrod Purvis." Andross replied as the doctor violently shook his head.

"I hate that name…call me Dr. Viper. Anyway, I came to tell you that the countermeasures you requested are ready for your use should you need them."

"Thank you, Viper. And my hats off to you for keeping the kittens in the dark about what we're doing. I hear they are really good at seeing what's in the shadows." Andross smiled evily as he and Viper went downstairs to the hall and turned left at the junction.

"It was easy considering how many enemies those two have. By the time they fight off Pastmaster and my fellow scientist, Dr. Harley Street, we will have finished our work and they will be none the wiser."

After a few more minutes, Andross and Viper arrived at the main laboratory. The two of them covered their ears due to the slightly uncomfortable noise level coming across the hall. It seemed Dr. Robotnik was wasting no time making good on his promise.

"Do you really think these countermeasures will be necessary seeing as we will all get what we want after all is said and done?" Viper pointed out as Andross held the first of many thousands of specimens that he could summon at a moment's notice.

"We're the definition of evil, my dear Viper. By our very nature we are inclined to stab each other in the back. I'm just insuring that my blade will be faster and stronger than everyone else's. But you have nothing to worry about. I am not so stupid as to not reward loyalty or destroy my allies when there is no benefit in the action." Andross said to try and reassure Dr. Viper as they looked upon their creations and thought about the day when they would see the destruction of all of their enemies.


	5. Dark Truths

**Chapter Five**

Dark Truths

Falco and I were just finishing our latest training session when Fox McCloud ran up to us and literally screamed at us to get to the hangar. As we sprinted in that direction we began to see why Fox was in such a state of panic.

In the atmosphere surrounding the planet, we could see Samus Aran's spacecraft being fired upon by an ebony black behemoth of a ship. It looked like she was doing everything she could to try and crash land on the planet and put the fighting to her advantage. Unfortunately, it seemed that I was the only one who noticed this.

"Look, Fox. I think that Samus is trying to crash land. I'm going to try to meet up with her and give her some backup in case that black ship decides to send some of their own troops in pursuit." I told him as he suddenly did a double take. Thankfully he didn't take a lot of time to decide that my idea was a good one.

"Well, you're not going out there by yourself. I'll follow you in a landmaster in case they send some metal as well as some soldiers." Falco jumped in as Fox nodded and quickly left us where we stood with Slippy in tow.

It didn't take Samus long to make our theory a fact: she landed unceremoniously about two miles from our headquarters and she was followed by about twenty insect-like humanoids and more than fifty jellyfish-looking creatures which I could only assume were the _absorbers_ that my friend at the college had told me about and the documents in Star Fox HQ had referred to.

I thought about all this as Falco and I drove the landmaster as hard as we could to her location which Samus was quickly fleeing from. I could see that she was running as well as firing icy shots from her gun at the small army chasing her. But from what I could tell, any damage that was done to them healed within seconds. My worst fears were realized…I knew what the drug was being used for and it terrified me deep inside.

I was not allowed to dwell on my inner nightmares, however. Once we were within about twenty feet of Samus, Falco violently swung the landmaster into a half-turn as Samus jumped onto the side. From that point, Falco's only goal was to haul our asses to the headquarters.

As we were trying to accomplish that mission, Fox's familiar face came on the display screen in the landmaster. The other thing that happened was that we were quickly being gained on by the Metroids and Pirates that pursued us. I only had one choice: use the skills I had recently learned in training to hold them off.

"What in the hell are you doing?" Falco yelled as I jumped out of the landmaster and unsheathed a 2' short staff that I'd created. "You think you're going to be able to hold off an army with that stick?"

"This is more than just a mere stick, my friend." I replied as I pushed the two buttons which released a scythe-like blade on each end and extended the staff to a full 4'. "Just trust me on this one…get Samus to headquarters and get me some air support as soon as you can." I yelled as Falco put the landmaster at full throttle and I prepared for the fight of my life.

Closing my eyes, I tried to focus as best I could into gathering my inner energy. I had discovered, in training with Falco, that my ability to fly happened because I could focus my inner energy into moving my tails in a helicopter-like motion. Once I realized that, I naturally wondered if I could focus that energy in other ways.

For months, I did nothing but strain without getting any results. But, after one session in which Falco was not giving me any distance to maneuver, I suddenly shot out a burst of wind which knocked him back against the wall of the room where we were training. That was when everything changed: I quickly found that I could manipulate wind in any way that I could imagine.

So, as I stared down the army charging at me, I did the one thing I could think of: if I couldn't destroy the pirates and absorbers coming at me, then I could at least halt their progress and buy Falco some time.

I stretched out my hands, started spinning my dire scythe, and focused on producing a gale-force wind which would push the enemies back. It didn't take long for the wind around me to move in the direction I wanted…but I knew that I wouldn't be able to control it for more than a few minutes.

Sweat crawled into my eyes as the muscles in my arms began to scream for relief. Realizing that I couldn't hold back the pirates and metroids any longer, and not wanting to pass out from exertion, I stopped my attack and ran for the base. But I soon found hope in the form of the Great Fox that had just appeared above me.

Two well placed bombs later and the enemies that had worn me out only minutes before were little more than a smoldering crater. I was one my knees at this point from the sheer exhaustion that my body was experiencing. But in a way I was elated with myself: I had pushed myself to my very limits. At least my limits as I knew them.

The black ship that had spawned the enemies we fought left soon after and we silently celebrated our victory as Slippy held me by the armpit and carried me into the Great Fox. When we landed in the hangar of the headquarters, I was placed in my room on my bed to get some well deserved rest.

**The next day…Star Fox HQ Conference Room…**

"You were pretty impressive out there, Miles. Care to tell the rest of us just how in the blue hell you managed to produce winds of over 200 m.p.h. just by spinning that weapons of yours?" Slippy asked as I shook my head and laughed.

"I simply focused my inner energy and manipulated the wind around me through my dire scythe and…did what I did. I'm still trying to figure out how I'm doing this myself. I know it's the same thing that I do when I want to fly…minus the 4' inch weapon of course…and probably the wind is much slower and weaker." I struggled to explain as Fox put his hand on my back.

"Regardless of how you did it, the fact is that you saved our asses out there. But now on to the next item on my list: Samus Aran is here with us and I think I speak for Team Star Fox when I say that we'd like to know just who attacked us and why."

As Samus prepared to speak, I tried to gather my thoughts as best I could because I was going to have to reveal what I knew next. After about ten minutes, we all understood that _the dragon_ was Ridley, leader of the Space Pirates and _the absorbers_ were in fact Metroids.

"So we were attacked because they found out that you were coming to help us and Ridley thought he could block you at the pass?" Falco asked as Samus nodded.

"Well we stopped them in their tracks so we have nothing to worry about." Slippy added as I stepped in to correct him.

"As much as I'd like to confirm that, what I have to say is not going to. Our situation is still very serious because I've figured out what our mystery drug does. It is a catalyst for fusing cells from animals and plants together." I told them as they gasped in surprise.

"But wouldn't that be impossible. Animals and plants have too many differences to be able to combine like that, right?" Samus asked as I nodded.

"That's correct. There isn't a plant in existence which the drug would be able to combine successfully…but a plant-like creature could do so. And there's only one species which would fit the bill…the Metarex." I said with a tone that sounded like a death sentence.

"But Sonic Team defeated the Metarex. You fired the gun which destroyed their planet. There shouldn't be a trace of that despicable race left…unless…someone extracted the DNA from one of them and now it's being used to…" Fox slowly said as I nodded in agreement.

"That's why we have the group of enemies together that we do. Only Dr. Robotnik would've been in any kind of position to extract DNA from one of the corpses of the Metarex. There's just one problem…I saw the look on his face when I destroyed the planet…when I killed Cosmo. Because of that, he swore to never do any of the evil things that he did before. And for more than four years, he kept that promise."

"That explains what you said back when we were first looking at the documents… why the letter said that Dr. Robotnik wouldn't do more than just build machines and you agreed with that. But you also spoke in a tone that didn't sound like Dr. Robotnik had been trying to clean up his act before then." Falco added as I bowed my head a little and sighed.

"Yeah, I know. I guess I couldn't help reacting like Dr. Robotnik was up to his same old schemes even though in reality he may in fact be a victim here. For all we know, Ridley or Andross could be blackmailing him into helping them." I replied as Slippy decided to put in his two cents.

"Assuming that we're even correct in our reasoning so far, that leaves only one question: what would Andross or Ridley have over Dr. Robotnik's head that would convince him to start such a terrible series of events?"

I, for one, had no idea. All I could think of was that Andross and/or Ridley must've known Dr. Robotnik at some point in the past and were now using something that happened at that time against him. But I couldn't believe that: I've known Dr. Robotnik for eight years and anything that the two of them would have to use against him would have to be from before then. I couldn't see any secret that could be effective as blackmail after that much time had passed.

"So let's put what we know so far together." Fox said as I was suddenly forced back to the reality of the moment.

"We know about three of the four members of the group who created the drug which is at the center of all this: Dr. Robotnik, Andross, and Ridley. It's safe to say that the Metroids were the first test subject for the fusion and once they had been cleared, their DNA was fused with a test subject from the Space Pirates." Fox continued as Slippy jumped in.

"…Because only Metroid DNA had been proven in tests by those pirates to be fuseable with live subjects without serious or lethal side effects."

"That's correct. What we faced earlier was probably both an attempt to cut Samus off from us and a little test run to see what they were capable of." Falco added as I was suddenly hit with a dilemma in the explanation.

"What we saw were Metroids and Space Pirates with increased strength and speed…freakish speed. They were much faster than any creature we've ever encountered. Falco, Miles, and Samus were over a mile and a half ahead of them and they caught up to the landmaster in less than a minute." Slippy said as fear clutched my heart.

"There's only one creature I know who can do that…Sonic the Hedgehog!" I thought out loud as I literally ran from the room like a bolt of lightning. Fox, Samus, and the rest of the team yelled at me but I ignored them as what I had to do was infinitely more important. Pulling out my keys, I immediately opened the door to my quarters and turned on the interstellar communicator. I had to call Princess Sally…and fast!


	6. Despair and Hope

**Chapter Six**

Despair and Hope

**Ridley's Ship…on the route from Papetoon to Venom…**

"It seems that our army has a weakness to fire. Care to explain, Venom?" Ridley said with a slightly annoyed tone. They had only just left Papetoon's orbit and Viper didn't seem phased in the slightest by their failure.

"The drug becomes unstable at temperatures of 1600 degrees Fahrenheit or more and starts to break down. Any subject that contains the catalyst will start to disintegrate and die. But I saw this coming and have already prepared these two samples here which are completely resistant." Dr. Viper replied humbly as he led Ridley to his lab on the ship. Ridley smiled widely when he directed his attention to the chamber that Dr. Viper was pointing to.

"So you have neutralized the weakness of our army…good job my friend. Now there is no weapon or skill that can stop the thousands of space pirates and Metroids that we will create and use to strike our enemies." Ridley laughed as he and Dr. Viper looked behind a safety screen at a Metroid and a volunteer space pirate who were being doused with large blue and white flames.

"Unless the foxes plan on capturing our army and tossing them into a star then they are more or less invulnerable to fire and heat. In fact, they could easily endure the effects of the Sonic Driver which Robotnik says destroyed the Metarex." Dr. Viper noted as Ridley rubbed his chin.

"They would be heavily damaged by the impact alone. But, as we both know, that would be rectified within seconds." Ridley replied as Dr. Robotnik and Andross entered the room carrying a very advanced robot that looked to be offline.

"So this is where we got the DNA which gave our forces their speed. Your design, is it not?" Ridley said to Robotnik as he nodded.

"Neo Metal Sonic was my greatest creation, but was defeated by Sonic and his friends a few years ago. But let's get to the point: Venom has been terraformed and you have enough samples of Sonic the Hedgehog's DNA to use for your army. My service to you is over and it's time for you to keep your end of our deal…NOW!" Robotnik threatened as Ridley ran one of his claws under Robotnik's chin and grinned evily.

"Are you thinking of leaving, Eggman? How would you be able to keep your return to evil a secret when you return to Mobius? Surely those who you now call friends would discover your treachery and hate you again. No one knows that we forced your hand…but they will find out about what you've been doing here. And I don't think that I have to mention that you'll be going alone…" Ridley sneered as Robotnik bowed his head in shame. He slowly looked at the person laying in suspended animation in a liquid-filled container next to the Metroid and the space pirate and shed a tear as he walked away.

"He actually thinks we're going to use the drug to cure his cousin Maria. The fool…" Andross chuckled to himself as he joined Ridley and Dr. Viper in walking in the opposite direction.

**Meanwhile, at Star Fox HQ...**

"I sure hope Miles is alright." Samus said as she prepared to go outside. "I'm going to go back to my ship and see if I can salvage anything. If I think that the ship can be repaired, I'll radio you."

Fox, Falco, and Slippy nodded as they continued to talk among themselves about the battle with Ridley two days ago: they hoped that they could find a clue to how they could turn the tide of things. But they didn't get much time to do so as a sudden wail hit their ears like a thunderbolt. A few seconds later, they saw what created the nightmarish noise.

Miles Prower entered the command center in tears and was shaking. Sally had told him everything. He knew that that the death of Cosmo had not been necessary and he knew who was to blame...

_I knew. In my heart knew it was wrong! But I did it anyway…we did it anyway. And my best friend convinced us to while running a bloody, poisoned dagger in our backs. I don't know what to believe anymore!... _

"Miles!" Slippy suddenly screamed as Miles fell face-down on the floor with a dull thud usually reserved for a heavy duffel bag. He was still shaking…just more violently. Slippy instinctively checked for a pulse which he quickly found and made sure Miles was breathing.

"He's having a psychogenic seizure, guys!"

"What?" Falco yelled in confusion from the back of the command center.

"Seizure caused by emotional trauma. Now shut your beak and help me get him in a recovery position!" Slippy ordered as he and Falco turned him slightly. Fox walked into the command center seconds later and nearly dropped his coffee mug in shock.

"What in the…why aren't you guys taking him to the infirmary? Get a…" Fox started to say as Slippy cut him off.

"We can't pick him up until he stops shaking. We could do more damage than the seizure…oh no…he's having a nosebleed. Falco, run and get me two wet cloths on the double." Slippy ordered again as Falco sprinted out of the room.

"When will it stop?" Fox asked as Slippy glared at him for a second and then calmed down.

"I don't know, Fox, but if it doesn't quit in a few minutes I'm going to start getting really worried. He could suffer permanent damage." Slippy said as Falco handed him the two damp towels he was carrying. They all sighed in relief as Miles' shaking finally stopped. But something else had Slippy worried: Miles wasn't coming to.

"We'll be able to get him to the infirmary in a few minutes. Hopefully he will regain consciousness and tell us what happened to bring this on."

"He must've heard something terrible during that phone call he made. What in the world could have happened on Mobius to cause this?" Fox asked as Slippy and Falco slowly carried Miles down the hall. Fox closed his eyes as he walked next to them and whispered some things to Miles: he hoped that somehow Miles would be able to get better as a result.

**Six days later…in the Star Fox infirmary…**

"He still hasn't come to? It's been almost a week since it happened." Samus asked as Fox took a mug of coffee from Samus' hand and nodded.

"Slippy says that the seizure caused Miles to fall into a deep coma. He doesn't know how long it will last but he says that Miles can't respond to anything at this point. It's like he's a vegetable." Falco butted in as Fox glared at him for calling Miles that…even if it was the truth.

"Slippy also says that it is very possible that Miles has suffered severe brain damage. Only time will tell." Falco concluded as he started leading Fox and Samus down the hall.

"Where are we going?" Fox asked.

"Slippy is in Miles' room right now trying to find out what caused him so much emotional trauma. He thinks there might be a clue in there somewhere."

"You realize we are invading Miles' personal space, right?" Samus asked as Falco shook his head and sighed.

"We really don't have a choice. Slippy and I waited this long because we didn't want to start digging our nose in his things. But this may be the only way that we can find out what caused Miles to fall under so much emotional trauma." Falco replied as he stopped at the slightly open door of Miles' room.

The three of them entered the room slowly and sat down on the bed next to the desk which had been looked through by their friend. Slippy was knelt down in front of it and he was turning page after page in a green notebook that he had found on Miles' nightstand. Inside he found scientific notes about the catalyst that Andross and his allies had created…and his research into creating an enzyme to break down the compound.

"I tried checking the interstellar communicator, but it doesn't have a record of Miles' call home. And I haven't found anything else of significance except for this notebook. It seems to me, from the notes he jotted down in here, that Miles has been doing some work in the laboratory on the bottom floor and managed to produce both the drug that our enemies created and an enzyme that would neutralize its effects. He has other notes in here which I can't make heads or…" Slippy said as Falco interrupted the pun that would have been said next.

"We haven't used the basement in a long time. I guess we should go down there and see what exactly he was doing. It may give us a clue into what caused him so much distress." Fox replied as he lead Falco and Slippy to the elevator down the hall.

When they entered the lab, it was as if they had stepped into another world. All around them they could see nanobots of various designs conducting experiments. At the center was a large nanobot with a lab coat on who looked to be the robot in charge. He noticed them within seconds and whirred over to the entrance.

"You are friends of our creator…what do you require?" the nanobot said in a slow, harsh voice as Slippy stepped up to represent them.

"The creator was very upset recently over what we think was a phone call home. Can you tell us what it was about?" Slippy said as the nanobot's processors whirred for a moment.

"The creator does not confide in us about personal issues. He was upset and cried. That is all we can tell you. I must tend to the experiments…" the nanobot replied as he left them to go back to the center of the lab.

"It looks like we just hit a dead end." Slippy complained as Falco suddenly noticed an area of the lab that had escaped them before. It was another door which seemed to lead to a large room or something else. What caught Falco's attention was the security keypad next to it which looked to control entry into the room.

As Falco walked closer to it, the large nanobot suddenly emitted a short, but loud siren.

"That room is private. No one but the creator may enter it. Do not go closer or you will be made to leave the lab. The creator's orders." the nanobot threatened as Slippy suddenly cursed under his breath.

"That's enough, Slippy. We weren't using this lab and if Miles has a room in it that he wants to keep for him and him alone so be it. Ask the nanobot if he can tell us anything about the room.

Slippy did so and the nanobot whirred again before telling them that Miles had started using it almost immediately after creating them from scrap metal in the hangar. He also told them that once a day, every day, he spent a few minutes in the room and he did so at the same time every day. Slippy then asked them if they could take samples of the drug, which Miles had named Regeneral, and its' opposite, named Degeneral.

"The creator said you could. It can be used to destroy enemies…I must get back to my work…excuse me." the nanobot said harshly as it turned back around.

"You know what to do, Slippy. This antidote to the drug could be the key to defeating that army we faced this morning if our bombs don't work. I'd imagine that will be the case knowing how intelligent our enemies are."

"I'll build you bombs that use this Degeneral compound. I should have a sample finished in the next few days." Slippy said as they exited the lab and left the nanobots to their work.

**Three days later, at Andross' HQ on the planet Venom…**

Dr. Robotnik sat in the desk chair in his lab with his head in his hands. Andross, Ridley, and Dr. Viper had left a few hours earlier with an army of space pirates and Metroids numbering in the thousands. Andross had even taken his personal force which he had planned on using on his allies if they had attempted a double-cross.

He was utterly alone and every second he thought of breaking into the hanger and stealing one of the small ships. He could take Maria away and flee…but he knew that he couldn't possibly fight off the seven or eight space pirates who guarded the hangar and other areas which were reserved for Andross' and Ridley's use.

Suddenly, Robotnik heard a thump near him coming from the ceiling. Again he heard it…thump…thump…CRASH!

"Uugh…Robotnik…thank the stars I found you!" Sonic the Hedgehog said as he looked at a now stunned Robotnik.

"What are you doing here? How did you get all the way here from Mobius?" Robotnik asked as he realized Sonic was attempting a rescue and smiled.

"I was leaving the city when at the gateway I was met by a monkey-like creature, a dragon-like creature, and some kind of mutated freak with cat-like features." Sonic said as Robotnik jumped in.

"They would be the ones who kidnapped my cousin Maria and are using her to blackmail me!"

"I tried to stop them but they stunned me with some kind of paralyzing gun and managed to get what they came for. When I came to I followed their trail and saw them threatening you from a distance. I hid behind a bush in the yard across the street." Sonic apologized as Robotnik cut in again.

"They wanted me to help them build their army using the Metarex DNA. I guess they didn't know that I fly solo and I explained that to them. How they knew about me, the Metarex War, or that I had one of the Metarex in storage I will never know but I managed to get them to leave my headquarters. They must've came back and stole what they were after in the middle of the night. I had saw their ship fly off and assumed that they gave up on me helping them not that they would return and make a foolish display of my security system!" Robotnik whispered in what would have been a violent tirade otherwise.

"So what happened next?" Sonic asked as he paced back and forth.

"They must've seen Maria in the laboratory and decided to use her as a bargaining chip. When I realized what was going on I reached her only to find that she was being held down by space pirates. I had no choice but to go with them and they promised to compensate me by healing Maria's disease. But I know that they will never do that." Robotnik said as he suddenly punched the wall next to his bed.

"In my case I did the only thing I could. I ran as fast as my shoes would let me and snuck aboard the ship. I'm just glad they put their food and water in an unlocked room near the back or I would've starved by now waiting for a chance to find you." Sonic almost laughed as Robotnik stood up.

"We need to get out of here, with Maria, while we still have a chance. I'm sure that you can take out the space pirates that guard the hangar."

"We could set off the self-destruct system. I assume that there is one right?" Sonic asked as Dr. Robotnik nodded.

"I'd suggest you free Maria from suspended animation then while I knock out the space pirate guards and get one of the ships started. Hit the self destruct before making your exit. We meet at the docking port.

Sonic and Dr. Robotnik wasted no time in setting their plan in motion. Thirty minutes, and one huge explosion later, the two of them were flying out of Venom's orbit with a still unconscious Maria Robotnik slouched in the only remaining chair in the cockpit. They had stolen a rescue ship and they both knew they didn't have the means to get home.

"We've only got one choice. We're going to have to land on another planet and hopefully get a ship there. According to the map on the computer here, the planet of Papetoon is the…" Sonic started to say as Robotnik almost fell over in worried surprise.

"We can't go there. That's where Ridley's army is going!" Dr. Robotnik exclaimed as Sonic gave him a wide, joker-like grin.

"And we're going to land on the planet and unleash the kind of hell that they'll never forget!" Sonic laughed as Robotnik shook his head at joining up with his archnemesis even if it did save his cousin's life...


	7. A Tale of Two Wars

**Chapter Seven**

A Tale of Two Wars

_*tap*…*tap*…_

"Wh…where am I?" I asked as I stared into the face of a beautiful fox-like angel. Or at least that's what I thought she looked like…I was still a little groggy.

"You are in heaven…and no you're not dead. I've been told that you fell into a coma because of some kind of emotional trauma. That and the rigors of getting here must've done a number on your soul. You've been inert for nine days." she said as I tried to take in some air…which was stupid because I didn't need to breathe.

I shook my head slightly as I looked around the all-white room. Everything was white: the bed and everything on it, the dresser, and the vanity…all of it. It looked like the bedroom of this angel. At least that was my first guess.

"You're in my room, in case you're interested. As for whom I am, my name is Sarah and I am one of the many servants of Inari. She is your mother…I mean, your ancestral mother."

"So who exactly is Inari? I've never heard of her…" I asked as Sarah suddenly gasped and then shook her head.

"Your parents didn't tell you, did they? I suppose I shouldn't be surprised as your line has tried to hide their heritage for hundreds of years. This may come as a huge shock but Inari is a goddess and as her descendant, you are an immortal just like her." she said as I suddenly felt anger and confusion from deep inside. Sarah held up a hand as if she was going to explain things to me.

"Your parents, Rosemary and Amadeus Prower, didn't tell you because they deny their lineage to Inari as have their parents and so on all the way back to the early 1200's Common Era. It was because of William Prower that they did this."

"Who is he and what did he do?" I said with a slightly annoyed tone. I was getting a little tired of all of the new revelations I was being forced to swallow.

"Come I will take you to the Hall of Inari: a museum of sorts for her descendants. Here you will learn all about your legacy." she told me as I reached for her hand and we walked out of her bedroom. We talked about other things during the twenty to thirty minute trip to the medium-sized building on the end of the all white road we were on.

When we entered, I could see four other fox-like angels in various places in the museum. They all looked at me strangely for a second and then waved. I did the same, as quickly as possible, as Sarah showed me a row of holographic photos on the wall next to us.

"There have been thousands of descendants of Inari in history and here you can see some of the most noted. You can also see that since 1231 Common Era, there hasn't been another one. Behind you is the reason why." Sarah said grimly as I turned around to see a row of eight statues carved from what seemed to be a mix of ebony and marble.

"Every descendant of Inari has the choice to follow the path of righteousness and good. Those that do are affectionately called the _myobu_ and right now you are one…although you are tainted." Sarah sighed as I turned and stared her in the face in rage. That's when I suddenly felt a burning sensation going through the right side of my chest and down my right arm which brought me to my knees. I instinctively opened up my coat, pulled up my shirt and saw what looked to be a large black burn running from my chest down to the forearm. Sarah turned away slightly at the smoke that was rising from it.

"What…what is this curse?" I said through gnashing teeth as the pain finally subsided. I could see the angels in the museum looking at me with concern.

"I heard from Inari that you betrayed your soul and did something that changed history. You murdered your soulmate to destroy an enemy which would have endangered millions. Unfortunately your noble act was not necessary and deep down in your heart you knew that. The cancer which burns you is the penalty for ignoring that knowledge and you will have to carry it with you for eternity. Which brings us back to these statues…" she said as she helped me up.

"These eight kitsune are the vilest of the hundreds of Inari's descendants who turned from the path of light. They are the so-called generals of what we now call _nogitsune_ and they reside in the bowels of hell where they punish and torture all of those who are sent there. Like you they were cursed with the burn which you have. Yours is representative of the act which caused it to surface as was theirs. All of the _nogitsune_ became so because they eventually succumbed to the effects of the curse. No one who has had the curse has been able to stave it off for more than a few hundred years." Sarah explained to me as I read the short biography for William Prower.

"Because of his evil deeds his son decided to never again allow any of his descendants to know about their heritage in fear that they too would become _nogitsune_. He even went so far as to cut off all of his tails but one. And this is what every descendant since William Prower has done to their children a few years after birth . Your parents would have done it to you but you were separated from them, as you well know, and thus you are still a member of our immortal race. And I can see it in your eyes that you plan to stay that way." Sarah said happily as I nodded.

"I will not deny who I am. I was already told about this a little bit by a friend of mine. He told me that I was divine and that I was the '_chosen one_' whatever that means." I said staring at Sarah as she put up her hands and lip synched to me that she didn't know either.

It was at that moment that I was hit with a sudden revelation: if I was in heaven then that meant that someone else was too…

**Meanwhile, at Star Fox Headquarters…**

With a very satisfied look on his face, Slippy walked into the command center and showed off his creations: the new weapons designed to completely obliterate the army of Ridley and Andross. He held the blasters on a tray proudly as Falco held one and smiled.

"I've also designed your rocket launcher, my bombs, and the machine gun to be able to use the Degeneral chemical. I know it may have been overkill, but designing the bombs was so easy that I decided to try it with the other kinds of weapons…with a great degree of success I might add." Slippy said as he posed in pride of his accomplishment.

"There's nothing wrong with being prepared, Slippy." Fox responded as he suddenly heard a noise coming from the radar screen. It seemed that a large ship was within a few days of the planet and closing fast.

"That's the exact same kind of signal we got when Ridley's ship invaded us before!" Slippy exclaimed as Fox and Falco practically shoved Slippy in motion towards the hangar as Fox hit the alarm button. Samus burst through the door of the command center seconds later.

"Status report, Fox?" Samus asked as she did a system check of her Chozo armor just in case.

"Ridley's ship is coming back and will be here in less than a day. They're three days away now, but Andross knows all of the wormholes in the Lylat System and will certainly use the one that's near Venom to get here sooner. With Miles in a coma, we can't risk an invasion. We're going to head him off at the pass, so to speak. I want you to stay here and get the headquarters ready in case we have to retreat. But more importantly, protect Miles and the laboratory at all costs." Fox ordered as Samus saluted and got to work.

"If we use the wormhole near here, we can exit at theirs and get to them in less than six hours." Falco reminded Fox as he nodded and entered the Great Fox. Six hours later, they came to a halt directly in front of the wormhole and waited for their enemies to arrive.

Andross and Ridley announced their presence about twenty minutes later with a series of shots that bounced off the Great Fox's shields. Slippy and the others quickly assessed the damage and prepared for battle.

"What's our goal, Fox?" Falco asked as he took the wheel of their mother ship.

"We need to keep Ridley's ship from entering this wormhole. Slippy, I want you and Falco to stay here. I'm going to take one of the Arwings and try and do as much damage to Ridley's ship as possible. It looks like their guns are far enough apart that they won't be able to hit me if I'm careful." Fox answered as he went downstairs and then flew out of the back of the Great Fox in his Arwing.

At first, Fox's strategy worked perfectly. He didn't do much damage to Ridley's massive black ship, but he did keep them focused on him and not trying to get into the wormhole. It was while Fox was finishing up another attack run at the ship that he noticed the small rescue craft behind it flashing a distress signal. He could tell it was a ship built by Andross or one of his underlings.

"I've got a distress signal from a small craft behind Ridley's ship…guys; a human and a blue hedgehog are in it…the hedgehog must be the Sonic that is the leader of the team Miles was on before and the human may be Dr. Robotnik, one of our enemies. I'm directing them to you guys, alright? Find out what they're up to and make sure you're armed just in case this is a trap."

"Roger that, Fox. We'll find out what's going on and then report to you. By the way, Slippy just radioed the Cornerian Defense Force. They're going to be here in a little less than an hour to give us some backup. With them, we'll be able to put these two punks in retreat in a hurry. Falco and Slippy are over and out." Falco replied as the rescue craft entered the hangar of the Great Fox.

Dr. Robotnik and Sonic exited their ship and breathed a heavy sigh of relief at having made it to what they thought was a place of safety. When Falco and Slippy showed up about a minute later and pointed a pair of blasters at their foreheads, they thought twice about their decision.

But after a few minutes of explanation followed up by their report of the destruction of Andross and Ridley's headquarters, Falco and Slippy sheathed their blasters and led Sonic and Dr. Robotnik to the command center where they contacted Fox again. Slippy carefully took Maria to the infirmary and let her get some rest.

"So it looks like Miles was right about Dr. Robotnik after all." Fox told Falco as Sonic cackled inside. "_So that's where he went…"_

"That's not all. They told me that they activated the self-destruct in the headquarters before they escaped which means we can trap Andross and Ridley like mice if we can trick them into retreating back to Venom." Falco added as he heard the sound of laser fire over the radio.

"Sounds like a good plan to me. Get the engines going again and move towards my position. The Great Fox may take some damage but it will be worth it if we can get Ridley and Andross to backpedal home. I'll get on board once you've reached me. Fox McCloud over and out."

As Fox and Falco were paying attention to the instruments in the command center, Sonic started sneaking back towards the hangar. It looked like everything was going exactly according to plan...

**Meanwhile, in heaven…**

Sarah had expressed shock at my sudden request: I wanted to see my soul mate again. Unfortunately for me, Sarah didn't know where she was and so it was that Sarah and I walked for about two hours until we came to what was a large hall that linked the road we had just used; another road going south, one going north which was paved with engraved stones and jewels, and a short one that seemed to finish in a dead end.

Taking the road north, Sarah and I stopped at a huge desk where a burly, black bearded creature sat jotting down some things. On his right was a glimmering fox with nine tails who smiled at me as if she knew me intimately. Sarah introduced me to them as the burly creature looked up from his desk.

"This is the Great King Yemma who is the ruler of the afterlife and beside him is Inari, your ancestral mother. Only Yemma will know the answer to the question which burns within you." Sarah told me as Yemma leaned on his desk and stared at Sarah.

"Sarah, did you send me someone else to ask me which came first: the chicken or the egg?" Yemma laughed as Inari and Sarah joined in. I wasn't amused in the slightest. Yemma suddenly got annoyed with me and looked over at Inari.

"My jokes must be getting pretty old, Inari. First Kami-sama shows up here and fails to laugh and now one of your kids does the same. I wonder if King Kai can come up here and help me with that." Yemma chuckled as he looked back at me seriously. It seemed as if I could finally get down to brass tacks.

"You probably already know this, but my name is Miles Prower and my physical body is comatose. I don't know how long I'm going to be here, but my soul mate died years ago and I wanted to find out where she is in heaven so I can see her again. Her name is Cosmo." I asked as Yemma took out a gigantic logbook and sifted through it. When he suddenly stopped his search, he closed the book slowly and set it down. He frowned slightly, bowed his head a little, and sighed heavily as he looked into my eyes. When he did this, a penetrating fear ran through my soul. Yemma whispered something to Inari and she gasped in surprise.

"I'm sorry, Miles. I'm afraid that you're not going to find Cosmo in heaven. As you know her sacrifice nearly five years ago wasn't necessary. If she had not known this deep in her heart things would be different. But she did and as such I had no choice but to rule her death a suicide. Your soul mate now resides in hell. I'm sorry." Yemma told me as I dropped to my knees and wailed. Tears flooded my eyes as Inari and Sarah looked at me a shed their own tears of regret and sorrow.

After a few minutes I found the strength to stand. When I did I saw what I assumed to be one of Yemma's servants whisper in his ear. As I wiped the tears from my eyes Yemma pushed the servant away and became irate. His anger was squarely directed at me and for the second time, my soul felt a penetrating fear.

"It seems that Cosmo is only comatose just like you. Somehow her body has been resurrected and is in a stable condition. It's funny because I recorded her death almost five years ago and I don't make mistakes. My servant tells me you resurrected her body with science and I am not pleased with your tampering of fate. Not only is her body alive but now she is as immortal as you." Yemma told me in the sternest tone that he was capable of. Yemma, however, retreated in his anger as quickly as it had came upon him.

"But then again it may have been fate for you to do this. It certainly would be proper karma for the one who destroyed a life to restore it. But without her soul her body will be comatose for eternity." Yemma finished as another feeling crept up in my deepest being.

"Then I will go and rescue her soul from hell." I said in a serious yet confident tone. To my surprise, King Yemma was stunned speechless by my statement. Inari and Sarah were no different.

"Impossible!" King Yemma barked at Miles as he held up his fingers and counted out the reasons why, "One: It has never been attempted. Two: You will have to fight off every nogitsune to get to her and their queen if you are especially unlucky. Three, she will almost certainly not want to leave. Hell is like a prison: first you hate it, then you get used to it, and after a while you come to forget everything but it. And this is when you are truly ensnared in the underworld's grasp. Cosmo is probably at that state by now." Yemma warned me as I looked Yemma dead in the eyes.

"I betrayed my heart once, King Yemma. I will not do it again!" I sternly told him as he was stunned again by my actions. With a solemn look on his face he pointed behind me.

"Take the dead end road. It will lead to a dark staircase that will see you to a gate that separates this place from hell. What happens once you pass through them is your responsibility and yours alone." King Yemma told me as I didn't wait to hear the rest. I didn't need to.


	8. Hell Hath No Fury

_Chapter Eight_

_**Hell Hath No Fury…**_

_**I arrived at the gate of hell holding my nose and coughing slightly: I'd have to get used to the deadlier atmosphere in a hurry if I was going to make it. Two angelic, boar-like guards stood on either end of the gate and were armed with what looked to be staves with a crystal on top of each one. The bigger, fiercer looking guard put out his palm and I stopped.**_

"_**King Yemma has told me, just now through telepathy, that I am to escort you through hell and fight at your side if necessary. On a personal note, I think you're either the bravest soul in existence or the most foolish. I'll decide which depending on whether we come back or not. By the way, my name is Elijah." he told me as I chuckled to myself a little.**_

_**I didn't respond to him otherwise as Elijah opened the gate and we passed through. We reached another descending staircase and Elijah pushed on the crystal on his staff as he covered my eyes and then slowly released his hand. His staff was shining with a very powerful light.**_

"_**My staff will keep the nogitsune at bay until we find your soul mate. But I warn you that its' light will fade and go out in exactly one hour. After that we fight against all of the forces hell can bring against us and make our escape with or without your soulmate." Elijah told me as I tried to stay positive.**_

_**We passed through the first and second levels of hell without incident as Elijah's staff produced light that kept the residents out of view from us on all sides. But a part of me was very afraid. I could see shadows here and there and I knew that if the light Elijah wielded gave out too soon, the source of those shadows would pounce on me without mercy. The nogitsune, I presumed, were using their own means to follow us. It was as if they knew that we would only be protected temporarily. **_

_**When we reached the third level, the level where suicides are punished, I started to feel a tug deep in my soul. Without thinking I began to run towards what looked to be rows of steel-covered rooms. Inside each room, the walls were padded like the cells in a sanitarium and they were empty of anything else but their occupants. It didn't take me long to find Cosmo's cell and when I looked at her, it was as if my very soul died.**_

_**Cosmo was in a slouched position on the back wall. The first two things that I noticed was that she was my age and that her skin, so to speak, was brown and withered. Considering the fires which spewed forth from holes in the floor and the intense heat that I felt, as if I were walking in a furnace, I shouldn't have been surprised.**_

_**I carefully opened the cell, with Elijah close by keeping watch, and was horrified to see long jagged wounds all over her naked body with over half of them bleeding or festered with rot. I could also see places where her skin was much darker…burns, deep burns inflicted on her back as if by a whip. I was so shocked and saddened that I couldn't even cry out in sorrow. Before I could follow my impulse to hold her and comfort her, though, a screeching voice burrowed its way into my conscious.**_

"_**Why…why are you here, soul mate…are you here to join me in my suffering?"**_

**I knew it was Cosmo…she was speaking to me through my mind. But to my absolute terror, her voice was as cold as an icicle. I had never heard her voice in any tone but one of warmth and love. My thoughts must have been heard by her because she responded almost immediately after my mind quieted.**

"_**I do not know love…all I know is pain and hate. I enjoy the whip and the torch which make me bleed and burn. They are a relief to me. I even find pleasure in other ways…" **_**Cosmo told me as I shook my head violently. I knew what she meant by her last statement and I couldn't believe that she was not only being violated in such a fashion but that she found some sick and twisted comfort in it. **

"_**You will find comfort too…here with me. You will learn to hate…you will learn to enjoy pain, to give in to those things you now despise. That's the only way you will be with me…I can never leave…I will never leave…"**_

"**I cannot and will not believe that!" I said out loud as Elijah began to get nervous. He had seen the light of his staff flicker. He knew that we our time was running out. When it did we would have to escape or fight for our very souls.**

**Meanwhile…near the planet of Venom…**

Fox's plan had worked perfectly. Once the Great Fox started advancing on Ridley's ship, it turned around and sped off as fast as it could and started entering Venom's atmosphere. With Fox and his Arwing safe on board, Slippy and Falco began to get their weapons ready.

"How much ammunition do we have?" Fox asked as he entered the cockpit. Slippy gave a thumb up as Falco handed Fox a clipboard with a list of their weapon status. Fox grinned widely and stared out of the cockpit window as they descended through the thick, green clouds and landed near the smoldering ruins of what had been Andross and Ridley's HQ. They saw their panicked enemies trying to release their army as quickly as possible and became even more confident. Before he led his team out of the Great Fox, he told Sonic and Dr. Robotnik to stay on the ship and have it ready for immediate takeoff just in case.

Once everything was ready, Fox led the charge out of the side exit of the Great Fox. Everyone crossed their fingers as Falco delivered a series of missiles into the heart of their enemies. They weren't disappointed with Slippy's invention or with Miles' research. When the missiles exploded and the green gas that came out finished its work, almost a third of Ridley's Metroids and Space Pirates were nothing more than pools of liquid being absorbed by the planet's soil. Those that remained were quickly disposed of by a round of fire from Fox's machine gun as they ran at us in futility.

With Ridley's army destroyed, Andross released his force: a huge group of armored, mechanized soldiers. Their exposed limbs had a greenish tint and a leaf or two could be seen here and there on them. They charged at us and Fox sweated a little.

"I've only got two missiles left. I'll fire one at each side while you throw your bombs at the center." Falco told Slippy as their enemies came ever closer. Fox fired round after round at the mechs which had no effect on them at all.

Fox didn't get a chance to start worrying, however: Falco and Slippy's weapons saved the day. Falco's fired his two missiles and the explosion blew apart chunks of the army's metallic armor. When Slippy started hurling bomb after bomb in front of the army's path, the mechs were forced into having to cross line after line of Degeneral gas which seeped into the cracks in their armor and choked the life out of them.

"We've won!" Fox yelled as he hugged Falco and Slippy. They knew that Andross and Ridley didn't have anything else to throw at them and that their enemies' only chance of escape was to leave the planet. Unfortunately for them, the Corneria Defense Force and the Galactic Federation's ships would arrive within minutes.

"You think you're tasting victory? You are fools who have only begun to see our power." Fox heard a voice hiss as he saw a mutated creature with feline and reptilian features coming towards them. Fox realized that the freak must be the creator of the drug which had started all this.

"You're pretty brave for someone who's had their entire army cut down like wheat! No headquarters…no army. Shouldn't you be running or are you ready to surrender?" Slippy taunted the three of them as Fox shook his head at Slippy's lack of tact.

"Why should I? You may have destroyed my creations but I can always make more. The fact is that you have fallen right into my trap. Of course, since you have no clue who or what I am, you couldn't know of my power to completely control and manipulate any plant-based life forms I design. Take a really good look below you…around you…behind you. Look at the trees and the vines and the very ground that I seeded with help from my drug. You managed to wipe out an army of thousands, but can you defeat an entire planet?" Viper cackled as Fox, Falco, and Slippy suddenly realized that they were completely surrounded by vegetation of Viper's twisted design: they were in deep trouble.

**The Third Level of Hell...**

I did everything I could to try and find any part of the Cosmo that I had known as a child but with no success. All that I could see before me was the form of a tortured hag who cackled with laughter in my mind. When the little bit of light that I could see disappeared I knew that it was over. Only a small part of my soul held any hope.

"The light has gone out and the nogitsune are coming this way and fast! We must escape this place now!" Elijah ordered as I ignored him and tried to muster up any courage I had left. I wasn't going to give up. I had to believe that Cosmo's soul still had a piece of her former self even if it was microscopic.

"No Elijah we stay and fight. I can manipulate the air that sustains these flames and hold them at bay for as long as we need. Just help me keep them from getting to Cosmo alright?" I asked as Elijah nodded reluctantly and went into a defensive stance.

With a silent prayer I held out my hands and managed to force the attackers into a bottleneck. But unlike the one other time I'd tried my powers my enemies were only slowed...not stopped. And in my mind I could hear Cosmo taunting my seemingly futile efforts.

_"Give up already...you will be with me forever...be with me in pain...in suffering...in the daily torture of our bodies. You will learn to hate our betrayer the hedgehog like I have...you will learn to hate me...you will learn to despise me and what I have become."_

I could only assume that King Yemma had told Cosmo about why she was being cast into hell when she had arrived. But it was the last part of what she said...it was a lie. I would never hate Cosmo no matter what she became. But Cosmo only taunted me more as I pushed a nogitsune away that had came within a few feet of me. But it was of no use as now Elijah and I faced an army of forty or so nogitsune and had nowhere to retreat to.

As I stood at the entrance of Cosmo's cell and strained to keep our enemies back, I started to remember the times that Cosmo and I had been together in the past. And as I turned one final time to look at my soul mate, it seemed that I was finally invading her mind for once. She looked as if she was hurting and she even shed a few tears.

_"How can you still love me...LOOK AT ME!"_ Cosmo screeched in my mind. It was then that I closed my eyes and told her exactly how I felt.

"It doesn't matter how much you change...you are still my soul mate and I will always love you. Neither time nor hell will ever change me or my intimate feelings towards you." I told her in a slow, deliberate whisper as one of the larger nogitsune finally broke through our defenses. I could do nothing to resist as he held me off the ground with his arm and started to choke me. I knew that I didn't need to breath here but I could still die from a broken neck. One good thing came out of it however: the hold that hell had over Cosmo's soul finally snapped.

"I will always love you too. Thank you for not giving up on me." Cosmo said in the soft, sweet voice that I enjoyed so much. As she struggled to stand up she slowly became herself again: green and beautiful but still bearing every wound and burn that had been inflicted on her.

To my surprise her facial expression changed and she became completely enraged at the nogitsune who had tortured her for nearly half a decade. The ones that were right next to us started to get scared and even the one at my throat dropped me like a duffel bag and backed off. As I turned to Cosmo again and tried to rub the horrendous pain out of my neck, it seemed she was ready to get herself some payback for almost five years of being whipped, beaten, burned…and raped.

As I tried to not think about the last item on Cosmo's list of violations, Cosmo surprised me again by sprinting towards the nogitsune that had been choking me. With the power of a football player she speared him right in his muscular abdomen. She then sat on top of him and started beating his face into a bloody pulp. Then she lashed out with a primal screech at the others around her. The snarling nogitsune, to their credit, decided it was just about time to retreat like scalded dogs.

"This is our chance. We have to get out of here or they could call reinforcements!" Elijah yelled at us as I literally had to pry Cosmo's hands off of the nogitsune's face. Running as fast as possible to the staircase in the distance we realized that Elijah had predicted future events perfectly: Now hundreds of the evil foxes sprinted towards us with their teeth exposed.

Once we got to the first floor and made our way up the stairs we could see the gate of hell in our wake and we sprinted even harder. Somehow we made it and Elijah, with the other guard, activated his staff and the nogitsune army slowly backed off from the gate. Cosmo and I dashed up the other set of stairs and kissed and hugged each other and made up for five years of being apart. King Yemma and Inari came up to us as Cosmo and I finally let go of each other and walked to them holding each others hand.

"I have never seen such undying faith in my thousands of years of being Lord of the Afterlife. That was amazing but I imagine you'd like to get back to being alive. Take the road with the bright light at the end and your souls will return to your living bodies." King Yemma instructed as Cosmo and I bowed in respect. Inari added that if I could do what I just did then I might be able to stave off my curse as well. I sure hoped so.

With some final words and waves goodbye, Cosmo and I walked hand in hand down the brightly lit road. But, as I looked at her, I remembered what she had done to the nogitsune that had attacked Elijah and I and inside I began to feel a growing terror in my soul. I feared that she would forever carry the burden of rage at what had happened to her and an eternal hatred for the individual who had caused it.


	9. Like A Cosmo Burned

_**Chapter Nine**_

_...Like A Cosmo Burned_

_The first thing on my mind when I found myself laying on a bed in the Star Fox HQ's infirmary was getting to my laboratory and opening the door to my private quarters: that was where Cosmo would be. As Samus tried to recover from my sudden awakening and the dash afterward down the hall, I could hear her running towards me yelling something. She would catch up with me in the lab soon enough._

"_Welcome back creator. Your…" my head nanobot tried to say as I gave him a signal to be quiet. He obeyed without question, as I had programmed him to, and I quickly inputted my seven digit security code. When I opened the door, Samus was just getting inside my lab. She didn't say anything as I walked in and saw Cosmo standing naked before the broken glass chamber that I'd kept her in. The pot which had held her when she was still a white seed was shattered inside the chamber._

"_Samus, do me a favor and get me a spare uniform." I ordered Samus as she hesitated._

"_What do you need it for and who's in there with you? You just woke up from being comatose!" Samus started to object as I started to get frustrated._

"_I will explain as soon as you get me the uniform alright?" I yelled a little as Samus reluctantly complied with my request and walked out of the lab. She returned a few minutes later with a medium-sized, all white uniform with long sleeves. I took it from her and shut the door to the room until Cosmo had finished getting dressed._

_When Cosmo walked out Samus gasped at my soul mate. After explaining everything, which took a considerable amount of time, Samus nodded at me and tried to process everything I had said._

"_So what you're telling me is that you discovered that the reason that your soul mate didn't grow again after becoming a seed is because she lacked a certain element native to her now destroyed planet which the drug Regeneral contained. You injected the seed with the drug along with enough fertilizer to speed up her growth until she reached your age. The result being what I see here." Samus told me as I nodded and then told her about why I fell into a coma and about my journey to heaven…and hell._

_Samus didn't say anything due to the intense shock she felt. But I got the feeling that what I'd said had reminded her of something because she signaled for Cosmo and me to follow her into the hangar. That's when she told us what was going on with Team Star Fox._

"_No wonder you didn't get them when I first awoke! And you say that your last contact with them was just before they started to land on the planet Venom? How long ago did they leave?" I asked in a hurry as Cosmo and I started to get the Blue Typhoon ready for takeoff. It was no small relief to me that it was still here in the hangar._

"_About nine hours ago give or take. That's what worries me: they haven't contacted me since." Samus replied as I explained a way that I could get to Venom in minutes._

"_Then let's go to Venom. I just hope that Team Star Fox isn't in too much trouble." Samus answered as we started up the Blue Typhoon and took off._

_A few minutes later, after using the warp rings I had on board, we began our descent into Venom's poisonous atmosphere. I could just barely see the Great Fox through the heavy cloud cover and I landed on a stretch of meadow within about fifty yards of it. And that's when I saw Dr. Robotnik, and Sonic, in the cockpit window._

_Unfortunately Cosmo saw them too and she jumped out of the Blue Typhoon and sprinted to the Great Fox. When I finally caught up to her she was trying to rip the side door off the ship._

"_I don't think that my friend Fox McCloud would like you trying to destroy a part of his ship." I told her as she glared at me with a look of pure hatred that I hadn't seen since we'd escaped from the depths of hell. But I knew that it wasn't directed at me._

_Thankfully for the Great Fox, Dr. Robotnik opened the door thinking it was a member of Team Star Fox. He barely had time to express his shock at seeing someone he thought was dead before his companion in the ship was being kicked around like a soccer ball. As Sonic tried to recover, in the few seconds he had, he caught a glimpse of me entering the ship._

_But he didn't have time to say anything to me because he had to worry about Cosmo's hands on his neck…and trying to breathe of course. As much as I wanted to join in I also knew that my friends on Team Star Fox could be in serious trouble. That and I didn't want my curse to flare up again. So as I put my hand on Cosmo's shoulder, I tried to reason with her._

"_I think he's had enough payback for now…I know that you'll never get enough to make things right and we need to go help my friends on Team Star Fox. So please, let the no-good backstabber breathe again, okay?" I asked Cosmo pushed my arm away._

"_Not a chance. I love you, but he's going to feel every pain that I felt. He's going to suffer for his crimes…" Cosmo growled as Sonic managed to kick Cosmo off of him long enough to respond._

"_I've been banished from my home on penalty of death and I have to live with the fact that I stabbed my best friend in the back. I'm suffering enough…" Sonic said through what had to be intense pain. But Cosmo wasn't finished: she ran at Sonic and speared him with the same intensity that I'd seen her hit the nogitsune in hell with less than a day ago._

"_I happen to disagree you sick bastard!" Cosmo yelled as she slapped Sonic hard across the face, stood up, and began to kick him repeatedly in the abdomen and chest: it was like she was going to stomp a mud hole in Sonic and walk it dry. I couldn't just stand by and watch this even though Sonic certainly deserved it: I walked over to Cosmo and held her down as Sonic struggled to his feet and held his battered chest with his right arm._

_As Sonic held his hurting neck and started to cough, I forced Cosmo to look at me face to face and we had a conversation just in staring at each other. She began to cry as I told her, in my facial expression and in a whisper that only she could hear, that the road of vengeance was not one she wanted to take. It would only make her a prisoner again._

_Before she could respond to my words, however, I started to hear the footsteps of someone coming towards us._

"_What's going on?" a woman's voice said as Dr. Robotnik rushed over to the part of the ship that Cosmo and I couldn't see._

"_It's okay, Maria…nothing's going on. You should get some rest." Dr. Robotnik told her as I suddenly felt bad for letting a brawl happen in front of Dr. Robotnik's cousin…even if I hadn't known she was present._

"_Sorry for letting foul language and a brawl happen in the ship. I didn't realize that Maria was on board…look, when Sonic has gotten his second wind, tell him that me and him need to have a talk aboard the Blue Typhoon. I'll guarantee his safety while I ask him some questions that I have about his betrayal…just promise me that you'll make sure he doesn't try getting a ride off the planet. I'd hate to have to go looking for him." I told Dr. Robotnik as he pleasantly agreed. He knew what I'd do to Sonic if he didn't want to be an adult and take responsibility for his sins._

_As Cosmo and I left the Blue Typhoon I saw Samus using the scanners in her armored suit to try and locate Team Star Fox. When she did she started running towards their location as Cosmo and I followed her at a rapid pace._

_We arrived just in time to see Slippy being picked up and ensnared by one of the trees ahead of us and to hear the cackling laughter of the vile-looking creature ahead of us. On the left was Andross and on his right was Ridley: they looked very confident, but lost a little bit of it when they saw Cosmo and I…especially when Cosmo touched her hands to the ground and closed her eyes in an attempt to focus._

"_This creature is manipulating the planet's foliage, but he doesn't know that I have this same ability. I'm going to rip the plant life from his grasp and free your friends, but I need you to take care of the other two." Cosmo explained to me with a little bit of guilt in her voice for what had happened earlier. I nodded and unsheathed my dire scythe as I held Cosmo close so as to let her know that I didn't hold anything against her…I couldn't imagine how hard it would be to not take revenge for what Sonic caused her to have to go through._

"_Well once Team Star Fox is free, they can handle Andross so I'll keep Ridley at bay." I replied as I rushed at Ridley with a fury. The creature who was controlling the planet tried to stop me, but Cosmo ended the attempt before it began. As for Ridley, he only flew a few feet off the ground before my absolute lordship over the powers of wind brought him back down to earth with a loud and painful thud. After having a few moments of conversation, in secret, with him Samus caught up to me and put a missile lock on Ridley's head._

"_It's over scumbag! You move an inch and you're going to be a head shorter. And unlike your weak and pathetic excuse for an army you won't be able to make it grow back." she threatened as Cosmo finally managed to rip control of the planet's foliage from the cat and snake-like freak. As Fox, Falco, and Slippy started to recover Cosmo used one of the trees next to Ridley to trap him. As for Andross, he was heading to Ridley's ship and fast. But he didn't get very far: the Galactic Federation and the Cornerian Defense Force had arrived. They landed their ships in front of Andross and he wisely stopped and surrendered himself._

_Meanwhile Dr. Viper was struggling to free himself but with no success: Cosmo had proven that natural skill beats accidental mutation any day. But something worried me and my instincts proved correct as I saw Dr. Viper use the little bit of movement he had gained to poke a small spot on the right sleeve of his lab coat._

"_I…I'll never go to prison again! You may have captured my partners but the great Dr. Viper has one last trick up his sleeve." Dr. Viper told us as a small syringe suddenly slid down his arm. It looked like something a magician would do and I would have been impressed…if I hadn't noticed that the syringe contained some kind of chemical. With one movement, Dr. Viper injected the chemical into his neck. Cosmo released control of the tree that had held him in disgust as Dr. Viper's mutated body oozed off the tree and was absorbed by the surrounding soil. Seconds later, we were saluted by who I assumed to be the commander of the GF and by General Peppy Hare._

"_Great timing, guys." I told one of the soldiers coming towards us as Cosmo gave me a stare that told me that it would be a good time for us to leave._

"_Where are you going, Miles? And is that who I think it is next to you? Is that your soul mate? I thought she was dead!" Slippy rambled as I smiled and silently thanked Falco for the hard slap that he inflicted on the back of Slippy's head._

"_It is my once deceased soul mate…I guess I have a little explaining to do." I sighed heavily as I began to tell them about everything that had happened while I was in a coma. When the shock of the almost unbelievable news wore off, Falco moved forward a little to ask a question of Cosmo and me._

"_So you and Cosmo are immortal…you'll never die." Falco said as he tried to come to terms with what I'd said, just like the others._

"_Not from old age anyway and Cosmo could only die from the Degeneral drug. I could die from lethal wounds, sickness, or poisoning just like anyone else though." I replied as I noticed that Slippy was visibly upset._

"_You resurrected Cosmo and went to hell to retrieve her soul while you were comatose…do you realize that you changed fate itself? Do you realize how much of a violation of ethics that is?" Slippy said as my very blood began to boil._

"_For one, I didn't resurrect Cosmo. I have Sonic to thank for that…if he hadn't joined a black and red hedgehog named Shadow in resurrecting her as a white seed right after she died, I wouldn't have been able to bring Cosmo back to what she is now. As for ethics I already had that discussion with the Lord of the Afterlife, King Yemma, and I hardly think you're in a position to judge me or my actions." I said carefully so as not to aggravate my curse with anger. Fox, Falco, and Peppy, to their credit, agreed with me._

"_You are out of line, Slippy. I know that if my wife had died like Cosmo did, and I had the means to, I would probably try to bring her back to life. So quit trying to play the moral know-it-all and just be happy that they have another chance to be together!" Peppy lashed out at Slippy as he cringed at Peppy's tone._

"_As for where Cosmo and I are going, we have some unfinished business." I told them quickly as I turned around and saw Sonic standing behind Cosmo and me. _

"_He heard everything…_" I thought as he continued to stand there with a look of intense sadness and regret in his eyes and face. I had to give him a little credit for his bravery: he knew that he could very well get hurt again by one or both of us. Dr. Robotnik and Maria were behind him and they showed concern for that very possibility. But to Cosmo's credit, she held back her intense hatred and desire for revenge just enough so that I could talk to him. 

"I just want to know two things and I want you're complete honesty, even if you know without a shadow of a doubt that it will be something I won't want to hear. We'll meet in the Blue Typhoon as soon as things finish getting resolved here. I also want to say something else, too."

"What would that be?" Sonic stammered in fear.

"You're not the same hedgehog that stabbed Cosmo and I in the back…you've had a change deep inside because of all this. We will never be best friends like before and I will probably never be able to trust you again…but no matter what is said in the Blue Typhoon in a few minutes, I'm going to try and forgive you." I told Sonic as he began to cry in both sorrow and relief. As I took a quick look at Cosmo, she stared at me in confusion, shock, and anger at what I'd said: I knew deep in my heart that forgiving Sonic was something my soul mate would never be able to do…not in a thousand years.


	10. Relationships

**Chapter Ten**

Relationships

As I walked with Cosmo up to the Blue Typhoon, I could see Sonic standing on the deck leaning against a tree. This wouldn't be easy for either one of us, but I had to have some answers to the things that burned inside. Cosmo and I entered the cockpit and I started to walk back out.

"Cosmo, I want you to get the ship ready for takeoff while I have a discussion with Sonic…" I told her as she shook her head violently and glared at me. She obviously wanted to get one more shot at our betrayer, but I had made a promise and I intended on keeping it.

"How can you possibly want to talk to him? He's worse than scum!" she yelled at me as I fired back.

"Listen to yourself! I know he caused you pain that I can never understand but you're quickly becoming a different Cosmo than the one I love so much. This hatred that you carry…you have to find a way to let it go." I sighed loudly as I finished exiting the command center and climbed the stairs to the deck.

Sonic noticed me almost immediately and I could tell that he was looking to see if I was alone. He sighed in relief when he saw that he was not in danger of getting attacked again.

"I just want to know a couple of things but I'm going to start off with the one that's been burning me the most. If you wanted to get rid of Cosmo so badly, why did you and Shadow use Chaos Regeneration to bring her back?"

Sonic sighed heavily as he stopped leaning on the tree. I could tell that he was afraid to be honest with me.

"Shadow and I knew that it would take a considerable amount of time to fully restore Cosmo to what she once was. But I knew something else: if the process were stopped prematurely, Cosmo would be regenerated, but only in her first stage of development…a white seed." Sonic said as he sighed again and continued.

"I figured that if you had a little piece of Cosmo still around…and you believed that Cosmo would come back through the seed, then it would be easier for you to stay on the team even though I knew that she would never come back without the unique element that she would need to grow." Sonic finished as I felt a rushing feeling of rage come over me. The only thing that kept me from reacting in anger was the fear that my curse would react as well.

"Why would you do this to me, Sonic? Why would you do all this just to keep me on the team…you cause the murder of my soul mate and then play with my emotions after that…what was going through your mind? Didn't you realize that I'd still be a part of the team even though my life would change to a great degree?" I asked Sonic as he looked at me with remorseful eyes.

"I feared losing your abilities but I feared losing you even more…I was just so desperate to keep you around…" Sonic said as he walked up to me and tried to hug me. But before he could, I instinctively pushed him back. Deep down, my heart was telling me that something wasn't right.

"Why are you pushing me away?" Sonic asked as I began my feelings of uneasiness grow.

"Do you really think that a few minutes of talking will suddenly restore things to the way they were? You stabbed me in the back, Sonic! I may be able to forgive you sometime down the road but as far as I'm concerned, in the here and now, I don't ever want to see your face again." I told him as his entire demeanor suddenly changed in an instant.

"I cannot live with that…I will not live with that. You were supposed to forgive what I did and we were supposed to be friends again." Sonic replied in a tone that completely took me off guard.

As my mind started to put the pieces together, I finally realized what Sonic's motives really were: it was jealousy, it was selfishness, but it was also something else.

"You know now, don't you?" It took you long enough to figure it out genius. When you told everyone that you were going to marry Cosmo, I realized that I couldn't live without you so I got rid of her and then brought her back as a seed hoping that you would grow closer to me just like you did the moment she died. You would depend on me for strength…" Sonic told me in a haunting voice as he came closer to me and kept his speech going. I was furious that he used his romantic feelings to manipulate me but I also got a sense that Sonic was, even now, trying to do exactly that. But why I asked myself as Sonic continued his speech...

"But you didn't. You locked yourself up in your room and wouldn't let her go. You didn't reach out to me and then you left. I thought I'd never find you again but fate has brought us back together. I mean, Cosmo's been through hell. She's not really right for you like I am."

With a thrust of my arm, I pushed Sonic away and gave in to my anger. The curse burned me but I couldn't let go of my utter disgust. All of the manipulation was for the purpose of bringing me back to him. Not just as a friend but as a lover!" I thought as I tried to retain control of my emotions.

"You are sick and twisted. I will never forgive you for this and you will never have me as your possession to do with as you wish. Get the hell off my ship or I'll tear you apart where you stand!" I threatened him as I felt a surge of hatred flood my heart.

"Do you really think you can? I only let Cosmo have her way with me because I thought you would pity me and Cosmo would dislike you for it. I still can't believe you didn't see this coming, my lovely fox. I mean come on, why do you think I've been denying Amy Rose's desire to be with me for so long. I already had someone to have fun with."

Everything in me wanted to tear Sonic limb from limb but I couldn't shake a thought that was growing stronger by the minute. My time in heaven, in hell, and now were being connected like dots in my mind.

"I'm going to have you one way or another and Cosmo's going to lose you one way or another." Sonic cackled as I stood up with a smile on my face. Obviously Sonic was unnerved by this.

"I think I've finally realized what is going on. You've been trying all this time to get me to fight you when, earlier, you were running from the wrath of my soulmate. What has changed that you seek violence upon yourself?" I said in a much calmer tone than before. Sonic responded by backing away and then launching himself overboard. Swearing that this wasn't over under his breath he quickly disappeared in the distance. I threw up again seconds later, unable to hold it back any longer, until I was too tired to do anything else.

Cosmo must have heard what was going on because she ran up the stairs and held me close as I wiped the small amount of vomit off my mouth. To my surprise she didn't get angry and jump over the ship to chase Sonic but instead wondered, like I did, about what he was really up to.

**Four Hours Later…**

Cosmo and I held each other as we slept in one of the large cabins within the bowels of the Blue Typhoon: we were both physically and mentally exhausted. When we woke up a little bit later Cosmo started up some coffee going and I took my notebook computer and prepared to catch up on some of my online classes from the university. As Cosmo came back to the command center she took an interest in what I was doing and sat down in the passenger seat.

"You have a nice computer there."

"Thanks. I'm catching up on the two weeks of homework I've missed and there's a lot of it." I replied as Cosmo got closer to me and looked at what I was doing.

"Are you going for an accounting major? It looks like you've got a lot of irregular numbers there."

I shook my head and ran my fingers through her hair as I explained things to her.

"My dream is to be the head of my own corporation where technologies from different planets and cultures are exchanged and improved upon. I have to study a little bit of accounting as part of the curriculum. I'm also taking a minor in chemistry but I think you already figured that out huh?"

Cosmo rubbed my chin and nodded. And then she told me something that completely blew me away: she wanted to take classes at the university as well.

"And what is it that you would want to study?" I asked as Cosmo put one of her fingers to her head and tapped her head a few times.

"Horticulture, I think. Yeah, horticulture would be right up my alley."

I tried to hold it but, failing miserably, I laughed so hard that spit flew out of my mouth and hit the dashboard. For a second I thought that Cosmo would be offended but she started to chuckle right along with me. She knew that I wasn't making fun of her.

"Well, my lovely soul mate, it will be about three months before the university accepts students again. But I think that when you do enroll, you'll make it in easily." I told her with a lot of confidence in my voice. I was trying to think about positive things but Cosmo could tell that something was bothering me. I guess I was being more cheerful and upbeat than normal and Cosmo recognized that.

"You're still thinking about the discussion with Sonic? You never told me what happened up there. What caused you to get so distraught and all?"

I didn't want to tell her because she hated Sonic enough without me adding fuel to the inferno. But the last thing I wanted to do was keep secrets from her and maybe telling her would help me move on past it.

"I found out why Sonic did everything that he did. He wanted me back on the team but not just because of my skills. He also wanted me romantically. Everything he's done has been an attempt to take you out of my life and force me closer to him. Even his display of sorrow for what he'd done was false. It was just another way to try and draw me in. But something inside keeps telling me that he himself is being manipulated by a greater power." I told her as she became furious for a few moments but then calmed down and tried to help me move on.

"Well he's gone now. We left him on Venom and he'll never find us again."

I smiled at her and we both stared at the endless sea of space as we flew the Blue Typhoon towards the planet of Fichina. But there was one thing that Cosmo said that I didn't agree with: Sonic would find us again. The only question was if the one behind his actions would present himself.

**The Planet of Venom, Andross and Ridley's HQ…**

"I'll get my revenge! He may have not given into me this time but next time..." Sonic growled as he ran inside the bowels of what had been Andross and Ridley's HQ. As he reached a very dark corner of the command center he was suddenly shocked by the emergence of a dark form. His surprise was short lived, however, as he immediately identified his queen and bowed in her presence.

"You have failed, slave, and I am not pleased. You were supposed to enflame the curse that is inside him but he still retains the power to resist. My plans to completely enslave his race, it seems, will be more difficult now than ever before."

Sonic nodded slowly in agreement and with one of his claws he lashed his face and made bloody penance for his failure. The nine-tailed vixen in front of him closed her eyes and accepted the offering while turning around to the prisoner she had enchained to the far wall of the room. As long as he remained under their control the myobu would never escape their reach...


End file.
